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*Chatsworth,  Duke  of  Devonshire 

Selbstbildnis  Memlings 

(Ausschnitt  aus  dem  linken  Flugel  des  Triptychons  auf  S.  2/3) 
Portrait  of  Memlinc  Um  1468         Portrait  de  Memling 

(Detail  of  the  left  wing  of  the  triptych  p.  2/3)   (Detail  du  volet  a  gauche  du  triptyque  p.  2/3) 


nil  wokk  <>i 

HANS  MKMI.IN( 


111  i*m»t»rcti»  I* 
1 1 1 1  tnuTit>s« 


M  <  M  X  I  II 


Copyright,  IQI3,  by  Brentano's 


HUE  GETTY  CENTER 

UMMY 


HANS  MEMLING 


HIS  LIFE  AND  ART 

In  the  history  of  human  civilization  the  fifteenth  century  has  a 
special  and  significant  value.  The  note  of  Spring  is  dominant  in 
it;  it  was  a  time  of  youth  and  growth,  of  discovery  and  of  the  birth 
of  a  fresh  enjoyment  of  art.  To  such  an  extent  was  this  so  that  we 
may  contrast  it  as  an  independent  period  with  the  Middle  Ages 
as  well  as  with  the  art  of  later  times.  It  broke  with  the  former  and 
prepared  the  way  for  the  latter,  even  though  it  had  not  perfected 
its  own  style.  It  was  a  period  of  transition.  With  its  coming  the 
old  times  departed,  but  the  new  had  not  yet  arrived;  yet  its  fields 
were  young  and  green  with  the  springing  of  fresh  seeds.  The  more 
we  investigate  this  century  the  more  we  shall  find  it  proper  to  con- 
sider it  as  a  time  of  youth.  The  truly  enormous  productive  power 
of  its  artistic  life  manifested  itself  mainly  in  the  introduction  of  new 
elements  which  the  later  centuries,  up  to  the  great  catastrophe  of 
the  French  Revolution,  assimilated  and  expressed  in  what  we  know 
as  modern  art. 

This  marvellous  youthful  energy  so  acted  on  the  art  of  the  fif- 
teenth century  that  it  also  changed  what  style  of  its  own  that  cen- 
tury possessed,  and  produced  that  which  differentiates  it  from  the 
earlier  Middle  Ages  as  well  as  from  the  Renaissance  and  Rococo. 
Quattrocento  painting  is  always  quattrocento,  whether  the  work  be 
that  of  1430  or  1490;  but  the  pictures  of  the  first  half  of  the  century 
are  altogether  different  from  those  of  the  end  of  the  century.  In 
that  interval  an  extensive  field  was  reconquered  for  art.  The  men 
then  working  had,  of  course,  their  own  special  ideals  derived  from 
the  age,  but,  at  the  same  time,  they  so  extended  its  frontiers,  so  to 
speak,  that  they  anticipated  many  of  the  characteristics  of  the  future. 
This  accounts  for  the  unusual  versatility  of  the  Quattrocento  style, 
which  is  evident  not  only  in  European  art  as  a  whole,  but  even  in 
the  particular  art  of  each  nation.    Even  the  Dutch,  who  had  pro- 

5 


duced  a  severe  and  formal  style,  displayed  remarkable  versatility; 
and  though  most  of  their  masters  resemble  each  other  so  closely 
that  the  work  of  one  is  often  mistaken  for  the  work  of  another,  yet 
modern  research  has  found  them  altogether  different  from  each 
other.  Jan  Van  Eyck  is  now  sharply  separated  from  Rogier  Van 
Der  Weyden,  and  both  from  Dirk  Bouts.  We  can  also  easily  per- 
ceive that  an  absolutely  new  style — new  as  regards  these  three  mas- 
ters— came  in  with  Hugo  Van  Der  Goes,  who,  even  in  those  days, 
was  famous  for  his  subtle  technique.  Finally,  in  the  last  quarter  of 
the  century  a  veritable  swarm  of  artists  arcfse  who  not  only  sustained 
the  fame  of  Dutch  painting  but  carried  it  to  a  splendid  conclusion. 
Chief  among  these  was  Hans  Memling,  who  may  be  called  the  last 
of  the  great  masters  of  the  classical  age  of  Old  Dutch  art. 

It  will  be  well  if  we  explain,  once  for  all,  what  we  mean  by 
the  period  of  Old  Dutch  art.  In  general,  one  may  include  within 
the  term  Old  Dutch,  those  artists  who  were  active  in  Belgium  and 
Holland  from  the  first  quarter  of  the  fifteenth  century  to  the  mid- 
dle of  the  sixteenth,  a  period  of  about  one  hundred  and  thirty  years. 
This  long  period,  however,  was  split  up  by  widely  differing  move- 
ments, so  that  we  shall  understand  it  better  if  we  divide  it  into  at 
least  two  periods:  that  of  classical  art  proper,  which  ended  with 
Memling,  and  that  of  the  very  clever  epigoni,  which  led  to  a  kind 
of  academy.  It  is  well  to  bear  in  mind  that  Memling  belongs  to 
the  first  division  of  artists  whose  works  are  very  beautiful  and  also 
very  severe.  Memling's  art  is  usually  regarded  as  characterized 
by  amiability  of  temperament  and  charm  of  composition.  While 
it  is  true  that  few,  if  any,  of  the  Old  Dutch  school  had  the  like 
charm  and  grace,  yet  this  is  only  partially  true;  for  even  Memling's 
immediate  successors  were  much  softer  in  manner  than  he  and  much 
more  intent  upon  exquisite  finish,  and  by  comparing  his  work  with 
theirs,  we  shall  clearly  see  that  Memling  must  still  be  considered  as 
one  of  the  severe  masters  of  the  Quattrocento.  It  is  in  this  sense  that 
we  consider  Memling  as  concluding  the  first  period  of  the  develop- 
ment of  Dutch  art. 

The  history  of  art  like  that  of  everything  else  is  subject  to  the 
laws  of  continual  change,  so  that  in  art  there  is  really  no  conclu- 
sion. All  things  are  moving  forward  and  upward,  and  even  death 
is  but  the  birth  of  a  new  life.  In  the  midst  of  this  ceaseless  move- 
ment certain  groups  may  be  discerned  which  seem  to  exist  for  them- 
selves and  appear,  in  the  short  period  of  their  life  history,  to  go 
through  a  cycle  of  art  history  in  an  abbreviated  form.    So  that  we 

6 


may  consider  the  Dutch  Quattrocento,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  it 
was  a  period  of  preparation  for  the  later  splendid  flowering  of 
the  Flemish  and  Dutch  painting  of  the  seventeenth  century,  as  an 
individual  whole  with  a  history  going  back  to  a  youth  and  ending 
in  old  age. 

The  more  we  know  of  this  still  partially  studied  period,  the 
more  do  we  realize  that  the  new  art,  wonderfully  manifested  in 
1432  with  the  unveiling  of  the  altar  by  Van  Eyck  in  Ghent,  owed 
its  remarkable  success  to  the  fact  that  its  artists  studied  nature  her- 
self. It  is  true  they  confined  themselves  to  a  few  problems  and  em- 
ployed no  large  number  of  themes,  and  what  they  did  they  did 
from  the  point  of  view  of  still  life;  but  the  later  artists  revelled 
in  the  living  world.  The  oldest  masters  of  the  Dutch  style  were 
distinguished  by  a  solemn  and,  in  spite  of  their  evident  joy  in  inven- 
tion, even  a  deeply  religious  mood.  This  may  be  deduced  from 
the  fact  that  their  technique,  though  sure  and  true  to  a  picturing 
of  nature,  is  by  no  means  facile  and  flowing.  In  its  manner  it  be- 
longs to  mosaic  art;  its  painting  seems  to  be  made  up  of  separate 
and  distinct  compositions  most  cleverly  put  together  to  form  a  har- 
moniwus  whole.  But  the  art  of  the  second  half  of  the  fifteenth  cen- 
tury shows  a  totally  different  mode  of  expression.  Seemingly  noth- 
ing is  changed,  and  yet  everything  is  now  soft,  fluent,  and  elegant. 
Expression  is  of  the  whole,  and  style  is  free  and  self-conscious.  The 
conception  is,  in  many  respects,  more  personal,  there  is  more  of  the 
artist's  soul  in  it  and  more  poetry.    This  was  a  wonderful  advance. 

This  progress  manifested  itself  in  such  a  complicated  and  in- 
teresting manner  that  it  deserves  a  closer  investigation.  Here  it 
will  be  well  to  remember  that  Jan  Van  Eyck  and  his  followers  are 
chiefly  important  in  that  they  reflected  the  lyrical  and  didactic 
style  of  the  Middle  Ages  in  their  delight  in  the  visible  world. 
They  appealed  to  the  eye  primarily  and  only  indirectly  to  the  heart 
and  the  intellect.  They  thus  gave  birth  to  a  new  style  that  is  so 
w  idely  separated  from  that  of  the  fifteenth  century  that  it  is  scarcely 
possible  to  bridge  the  two.  And  yet,  great  as  this  innovation  was, 
it  would  not  have  been  possible  without  the  style  which  the  Middle 
Ages  had  evolved  for  itself.  In  Italy,  throughout  the  whole  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  we  find  the  quattrocento  painters  revealing  an 
intimate  relationship  with  the  older  art,  and  in  Florence  we  sec  two 
schools,  each  partly  the  diametrical  opposite  to  the  other  and  partly 
connected  with  the  other,  and  yet  easily  recognizable  as  the  group 
of  idealists  and  the  group  of  realists.    Less  clearly  defined,  but  still 

7 


evident,  the  same  conditions  are  found  existing  in  the  much  more 
energetic  but  more  one-sided  schools  of  the  North,  especially  that 
of  the  Dutch,  and  around  1470  we  see  the  long-suppressed  idealism 
of  the  Middle  Ages  breaking  out  again  and  again  in  Hans  Mem- 
ling.  Much  of  the  character  of  this  extraordinary  painter  recalls, 
almost  immediately,  the  works  of  Master  Willem.  The  grace  and 
loveliness  of  that  art  intended  only  for  the  most  sensitive  taste  of 
the  dying  Trecento  seems  to  have  returned  in  an  almost  atavistic 
manner.  In  some  respects  Memling  recalls  Van  Eyck,  that  art  of 
Van  Eyck  which  in  him  had  found  its  final  expression  and  end. 
And  yet  it  is  a  fact  that  a  style,  once  dead,  can  never  be  made  to  live 
again;  so  that  Memling,  in  truth,  did  not  intend  an  archaic  imita- 
tion of  Master  Willem.  Only  in  a  slight  degree  did  he  fashion  his 
pictures  after  these  older  masters;  for  the  rest,  he  not  only  retained 
the  best  elements  in  the  achievements  of  the  fifteenth  century,  but 
developed  in  them  what  was  capable  of  development.  This  it  is 
which  makes  his  paintings  so  complicated  and  interesting  a  problem. 
He  employed  the  imaginative  elements  of  the  Middle  Ages  because 
Old  Dutch  art  was  forced  in  this  direction,  and  also  because,  like 
every  other  art,  after  the  severity  of  the  Van  Eycks,  Rogier  and  Dirk 
Bouts,  it  had  to  allow  room  for  a  milder  conception.  Furthermore, 
it  will  be  found  that  a  period  of  close  study  of  nature  is  always  fol- 
lowed by  an  indulgence  in  the  spiritual,  the  fanciful,  tending  to  a 
finer  elegance  in  taste.  So  that  an  art  like  that  of  Memling  was  abso- 
lutely certain  to  come  at  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century;  it  was,  in  a 
historical  sense,  a  necessary  development.  Still,  in  conceding  this 
we  must  not  overlook  one  important  consideration.  Elegance,  the 
lyrical  mood  and  grace  are,  as  it  were,  but  the  chemical  components 
of  a  style  in  art.  The  resultant  combination  and  the  form  given  it  by 
artistic  expression  depend,  in  the  last  resort,  on  the  painter  himself. 
Old  Dutch  art  would  have  taken  its  course  without  a  Memling; 
but  in  Memling  it  reached  a  perfection  which  only  the  personality 
and  character  of  the  artist  could  give  it. 

Memling,  though  a  representative  of  the  national  art  of  Bel- 
gium, is  of  the  Old  Dutch  school  by  virtue  of  his  art  only;  by  birth 
he  was  a  German.  He  was  born  in  the  archdiocese  of  Mayence, 
probably  in  Mumling,  whence,  no  doubt,  he  derived  his  name.  He 
died  in  1494  at  Bruges,  leaving  some  children  of  minor  ages  behind 
him;  so  that  we  may  assume  he  did  not  reach  an  advanced  age.  We 
shall  probably  be  correct  in  placing  the  date  of  his  birth  between  the 
years  1440  and  1450.    He  came  from  a  district  where  German  art 

8 


had  flourished  for  centuries,  and  it  would  be  of  the  highest  impor- 
tance could  we  bring  to  light  any  authentic  works  by  him  which 
related  him  to  this  art.  But  so  far  no  work  has  been  found  which 
in  the  least  suggests  such  a  relationship.  In  one  of  his  famous  paint- 
ings, he  introduced  a  view  of  the  Cathedral  of  Cologne;  but  that  is 
no  proof  of  Germanic  influence.  His  coloring,  draughtsmanship, 
modeling,  composition  and  types  are  all  purely  Dutch;  so  much  so, 
that  but  for  the  evidence  of  his  German  origin,  we  should  never 
suspect  it  from  his  art.  His  exquisite  poetical  feeling  and  wonder- 
ful sense  for  loveliness  and  grace  may  have  been  inherited  by  him 
from  Central-Rhenish  art,  because  these  are  not  marks  of  the  Dutch 
School;  but  the  splendid  discipline  which  Memling  received  from 
the  Old  Dutch  masters  gave  him  a  purity,  clarity  and  mastery  in 
the  modeling  of  forms  which  distinguished  his  figures  and  paintings 
unmistakably  from  the  German  school. 

Who  it  was  who  trained  Memling  in  his  art  has  been  a  vexed 
question.  It  was  long  thought  that  he  was  a  pupil  of  Rogier  Van 
Der  Weyden,  partly  because  old  traditions  seemed  to  indicate  it, 
and  partly  because  many  of  Memling's  paintings  show,  in  their 
material  and  arrangement,  a  similarity  with  Rogier's  work.  But 
neither  the  one  nor  the  other  of  these  arguments  will  bear  analysis. 
In  the  first  place,  the  difference  in  the  styles  of  these  two  artists  is  too 
great  to  suggest  such  a  kinship.  The  last  works  of  the  old  master 
and  the  earliest  works  of  the  young  artist  were  painted  in  the  same 
decade,  and  they  are  totally  unlike  each  other.  Indeed,  Memling's 
early  paintings  are  much  more  akin  to  the  last  altarpieces  of  Dirk 
Bouts,  the  Louvain  artist;  but  that  does  not  warrant  us  in  conclud- 
ing that  Memling  was  a  pupil  of  Dirk  Bouts.  The  difference  be- 
tween Memling's  art  and  that  of  Dirk  Bouts  may  not  be  as  wide  as 
that  between  him  and  Rogier,  but  it  is  wide  enough  to  remain  un- 
bridged.  Bouts  is  so  archaic  that  we  cannot  think  of  Memling's 
chaste  beauty  emanating  from  his  studio.  Perhaps  we  shall  be  justi- 
fied in  assuming  that  a  pupil  of  Dirk  Bouts  supplied  the  link  be- 
tween the  two  artists;  and  as  Dirk  Bouts  undoubtedly  influenced 
the  Schools  of  Bruges  and  Louvain,  this  will  also  explain  why  Mem- 
ling shows  such  an  intimate  relationship  with  the  Dutchman  yet 
remains  a  true  Belgian. 

On  technical  and  historical  grounds  we  may  consider  Mem- 
ling's earliest  work  to  be  the  altarpiece  of  Sir  John  Donne  of  Kid- 
welly, now  in  the  possession  of  the  Duke  of  Devonshire  at  Chats- 
worth.    James  Weale,  who  has  rendered  such  important  service  to 

9 


the  history  of  art  by  his  documentary  investigations  into  the  Old 
Dutch  School,  has  given  good  reasons  for  placing  the  execution  of 
this  fine  painting  to  the  year  1468.  Memling  was  then  probably 
about  twenty-five  years  of  age.  At  that  age  artists  were  usually  in- 
dependent of  masters,  and  this  is  evident  in  this  marvellous  triptych. 
Though  the  work  of  his  youth,  it  proves  unmistakably  that  Memling 
had  found  himself.  If  Memling,  at  so  young  an  age,  was  big  enough 
to  create  a  style  so  peculiar  to  himself,  he  must  have  had  the  neces- 
sary intelligence  to  realize  that  it  would  not  be  well  for  his  art  were 
he  to  allow  the  style  to  become  fixed  and  rigid.  He  would  rather 
refine  and  broaden  it  as  he  grew  in  years.   And  this  is  what  he  did. 

The  subject  of  the  altarpiece  at  Chatsworth  is  one  often  met 
with  in  Memling's  works.  The  Madonna,  surrounded  by  singing 
angels  and  saints,  is  enthroned  in  a  high-backed  seat  resplendent  in 
gold,  in  a  hall  which  opens  freely  into  the  landscape.  The  right  and 
left  wings  contain  figures  of  the  two  St.  Johns  which  Memling  so 
often  painted.  In  front  of  the  holy  Virgin,  and  at  the  left,  kneels 
the  donor  of  the  altarpiece,  Sir  John  Donne  of  Kidwelly,  and  on 
the  right  his  spouse.  We  see  here  the  young  Memling  already  in 
the  service  of  the  nobility.  This  is  no  mere  accident,  for  there  is 
good  ground  for  believing  that  he  belonged  to  the  court  of  Charles 
the  Bold,  for  whom,  probably,  he  was  both  court  painter  and  art 
adviser.  This  fact  must  not  be  forgotten  in  considering  Memling's 
art.  Charles  the  Bold  was  an  ambitious  prince  with  dreams  of  a 
world-empire;  his  court  was  splendid  and  luxurious  and  the  meet- 
ing place  of  the  great.  Memling  must  have  imbibed  its  atmos- 
phere and  grown  under  the  influence  of  its  lord.  His  pictures  point 
to  a  man  who  moved  in  the  best  society  of  his  day.  His  peculiar 
charm  and  grace  are  always  evident;  but  the  roots  of  his  art  are 
planted,  not  so  much  in  a  naive  religious  faith,  as  in  the  glory  of  a 
court  life  where  a  barbaric  custom  and  an  elegant  etiquette  existed 
side  by  side.  A  worldly  taste  is  in  a  large  part  of  Memling's  art, 
which  explains  why  it  was  that  he  so  often  painted  the  Virgin  as 
though  she  were  a  lady  holding  a  court.  The  motive  of  the  Middle 
Ages  of  a  Madonna  in  a  heavenly  garden  is,  in  Memling,  transposed 
into  a  motive  of  a  Queen  surrounded  by  noble  and  splendid  dames, 
as  if  discussing  some  subtle  religious  problem.  The  parallel  of  the 
famous  Courts  of  Love  suggests  itself.  How  different  is  it  in  Van 
Eyck,  whose  Madonna  is  either  a  well-developed  Flemish  matron 
or  a  woman  possessing  a  face  radiating  the  poetry  of  transcendental 
peace.  To  this  court  influence  is  also  due  the  evident  joy  with  which 

10 


Memling  indulged  himself  in  the  picturing  of  splendor  and  mag- 
nificence. He  dresses  his  holy  women  and  virgins  in  the  richest  and 
most  attractive  gowns — the  gowns  of  the  Duchess  of  Burgundy  her- 
self— and  he  has  a  keen  artistic  delight  in  the  elegant  fashions  of  his 
time. 

While  all  these  matters  point  to  Memling  as  the  accomplished 
artist,  yet,  if  we  examine  this  very  painting  with  respect  to  its  man- 
ner of  drawing  and  technique,  we  shall  find  quite  a  number  of  traits 
which  reveal  a  relationship  with  Dirk  Bouts.  It  was  from  the  lat- 
ter that  he,  apparently,  obtained  the  types  of  his  saints  and  that  pref- 
erence for  long,  oval  faces.  Especially  are  the  two  St.  Johns  in  the 
Dirk  Bouts  manner.  Technically,  there  is  not  that  sureness  of  exe- 
cution which  so  individual  a  conception  would  lead  us  to  expect. 
This  is  most  evident  in  the  portrait  of  Sir  John  Donne,  which  is 
narrow  and  sharp. 

In  the  year  1473 — the  story  has  often  been  told,  but  we  mention 
it  only  here — a  Dantzig  pirate  ship  captured  an  Italian  vessel  in  the 
North  Sea.  On  board  the  prize  was  found,  among  other  valuables, 
a  large  triptych  representing  the  Last  Judgment.  The  painting  was 
by  Memling,  and  is  now  in  St.  Mary's  Church  in  Dantzig.  If  the 
story  be  true,  we  must  assume  that  this  captured  picture  was  painted 
very  soon  after  the  Chatsworth  altarpiece,  that  is  to  say,  about  the 
year  1470.  The  picture,  unfortunately,  has  been  sadly  defaced  by 
a  too-ambitious  restorer  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Still,  the  charac- 
ter of  the  original  can  be  recognized  in  many  places  and  reveals  so 
eminent  a  technique  in  agreement  with  Memling's  style  that  we  recog- 
nize the  artist  in  spite  of  the  damage  done.  Through  the  researches 
of  Warburg  we  know  now  that  Jacopo  Tani,  a  Florentine  merchant, 
gave  the  commission  for  the  painting.  This  is  interesting  as  show- 
ing in  what  high  esteem  the  Old  Dutch  school  was  held  by  the  cul- 
tured nations  of  Europe.  In  the  early  part  of  Memling's  life,  rich 
Italians  ordered  altarpieces  for  their  churches  from  the  Dutch;  in 
the  later  years  of  his  life,  Italian  art  began  to  find  its  way  into  the 
Netherlands.  So  long  as  Dutch  art  remained  independent  and  na- 
tional, it  held  sway.  Memling's  "  Last  Jifdgment"  is  a  fine  exam- 
ple of  this  independent  and  national  character.  His  artistic  sense 
and  youthful  poetic  vigor  are  held  in  restraint  by  a  fine  technique 
within  the  limits  of  true  art.  Later  the  Dutch  succumbed  to  the  curse 
of  a  facile  technique,  and  so  lost  their  native  artistic  strength,  and 
with  this  loss  went  also  their  power  to  resist  the  siren  voice  of  Ital- 
ian art. 

1 1 


The  subject  of  the  "  Last  Judgment "  is  met  with  in  all  phases 
of  the  art  of  the  fifteenth  century.  It  had  been  a  favorite  one  in  the 
Middle  Ages  and  had  been  accepted  by  the  painters  of  the  Quattro- 
cento. We  find  it  in  the  "  Circle  "  of  the  brothers  Van  Eyck,  in  Ro- 
gier  Van  Der  Weyden  and  in  Dirk  Bouts.  But  Memling  alone  gave 
it  as  much  of  a  unity  as  was  then  possible.  This  is  especially  evident 
when  we  compare  his  painting  with  the  famous  "  Last  Judgment" 
which  Rogier  painted  for  the  hospital  at  Beaume,  at  the  request  of 
Chancellor  Rollin.  It  was  once  held  that  Memling's  composition 
was  derived  from  Rogier's,  but  a  comparison  will  show  that  he  dif- 
fered widely  from  the  older  master  and  was,  indeed,  far  more  pro- 
gressive. Rogier  divided  his  presentation  into  nine  sections  which 
have  little  or  no  organic  connection.  Memling,  on  the  contrary, 
treated  the  subject  as  a  unity.  Rogier's  work  is  related  to  Middle 
Age  sculpture;  Memling's  was  conceived  from  a  purely  painter's 
standpoint.  Rogier  dealt  very  cautiously  with  the  nude,  but  Mem- 
ling almost  revelled  in  it.  Memling's  painting  is  still  pure  Quat- 
trocento art;  but  the  tendencies  of  the  Renaissance  are  distinctly 
foreshadowed.  How  marvellous  are  these  naked  human  bodies,  not 
only  in  their  astonishingly  free  movement,  their  soft  and  graceful 
modeling,  but  in  the  truly  touching  expression  of  their  features! 

Probably  contemporaneous  with  the  Dantzig  "  Last  Judgment  " 
is  the  "  Madonna  "  (1472)  in  the  Vienna  Liechtenstein  Gallery,  rep- 
resenting the  Virgin  with  the  donor  of  the  picture  kneeling  before 
her,  and  St.  Anthony  behind  him.  It  may  be  that  this  painting  was 
part  of  a  large  altarpiece.  As  is  so  often  the  case  with  Memling's 
work,  the  composition  is  at  once  simple  and  unusual.  The  Virgin 
is  represented  as  if  she  had  been  sitting  in  a  cosey  room  and  were 
coming  forward  to  receive  the  donor,  introduced  by  St.  Anthony. 
This  is  a  genuine  Memling  conception,  by  which  he  combines  repose 
and  movement;  so  that  the  whole  picture  breathes  a  very  lovely 
charm.  In  this  sense,  this  painting  is,  perhaps,  surpassed  by  a  small 
picture,  the  "  St.  Joseph"  (a  subject  often  painted  by  Memling), 
in  the  Pinakothek  at  Munich,  in  which,  in  spite  of  its  small  size, 
there  is  not  a  trace  of  the  miniaturist's  art.  The  modeling  of  the 
figures,  however,  savors  of  the  conventional ;  they  are  so  smooth  and 
round  that  they  seem  as  if  they  had  been  turned  out  on  a  lathe.  Still, 
as  a  whole,  it  is  fluent  and  executed  so  as  to  accentuate  a  mood  of 
idyllic  repose. 

To  Memling's  early  years  also  belong  the  wings  of  an  altarpiece, 
now  in  the  London  National  Gallery,  of  which  the  other  parts  have 


been  lost.  They  represent  St.  John  the  Baptist  and  St.  Lawrence 
standing  framed  in  doors  of  a  late  Gothic  architecture.  The  St. 
Lawrence  is  especially  notable  for  its  splendid  coloring,  very  like 
that  of  Dirk  Bouts. 

The  painting  of  portraits  was  a  favorite  pursuit  with  the  Old 
Dutch  masters  and  they  achieved  remarkable  results  in  the  art. 
Memling  also  contributed  his  share,  and  a  number  of  portraits  by 
him  have  been  preserved  to  this  day.  They  form  an  important  part 
both  of  his  work  and  of  the  art  of  the  period,  for  they  are  a  distinct 
contrast  to  Jan  Van  Eyck's  portraits  with  which  they  were  once  con- 
fused. The  founders  of  this  school  conceived  the  painting  of  por- 
traits in  an  absolutely  honest  spirit.  They  achieved  a  surprising 
certainty  of  execution,  but,  in  spite  of  an  ambitious  striving  after  a 
faithful  picturing  of  the  subject,  they  were  too  regardful  of  the  spirit- 
ual qualities  of  the  human  face.  Indeed,  they  looked  at  it  as  related 
to  religious  subjects,  which  accounts  for  a  kind  of  supersensuous- 
ness  which  characterizes  them.  With  Memling,  however,  the  fun- 
damental conception  is  different.  He  is  true  to  the  fact.  In  the 
portrait  of  an  Italian  medal-engraver,  the  figure  is  holding  a  medal 
in  his  hand.  In  the  very  beautiful  portrait  of  a  young  man  in  the 
Oppenheim  Collection  at  Cologne,  we  see  that  it  must  represent  a 
member  of  an  Archers'  Guild,  from  the  fact  that  the  figure  is  holding 
an  arrow  or  dart.  Moreover,  the  background  is  a  wide  landscape, 
which  adds  to  the  life  of  the  portrait.  Memling's  portraits  are  free 
and  independent,  and  though  still  severe  and  formal  and  narrow,  in 
the  Quattrocento  manner,  they  presage  the  new  epoch. 

A  most  striking  work  is  the  portrait  of  a  young  man  which  was 
added  to  the  collection  of  George  Salting  in  London,  from  the  Felix 
Collection.  It  is  difficult  to  fix  its  date,  but  it  is  more  likely  of  Mem- 
ling's  youth  than  of  his  later  years.  A  fairly  early  date  should  be 
assigned  to  the  two  wings,  once  in  the  Kann  Collection,  if  we  could 
be  certain  they  are  Memling's  work.  They,  certainly,  bear  every 
indication  of  his  style,  though  a  certain  harshness  in  the  drawing, 
and  a  curiously  pointed  manner  of  the  composition,  make  us  reluctant 
to  attribute  them  to  the  master. 

Tradition  and  the  inscriptions  on  the  pictures  themselves  com- 
pel us  to  assume  that  Memling  was  unusually,  even  remarkably, 
active  around  the  years  1479  and  1480.  Indeed,  so  large  is  the  num- 
ber of  works  assigned  to  these  dates  that  we  can  scarcely  believe  he 
could  have  executed  them  all.  Chief  of  these  is  the  altar-picture 
in  St.  John's  Hospital  at  Bruges,  representing  the  mystical  betrothal 

T3 


of  St.  Catherine,  and  dedicated  to  the  two  St.  Johns — the  Evange- 
list and  the  Baptist.  Next  to  the  altarpiece  of  the  brothers  Van  Eyck 
at  Ghent  and  the  Portinaria  altar  of  Hugo  Van  Der  Goes,  this  is 
the  most  magnificent  religious  painting  of  the  classical  Old  Dutch 
period.  It  is,  in  every  respect,  the  equal  and  counterpart  of  the 
other  two,  and  from  the  three  paintings  it  is  almost  possible  to  de- 
duce the  history  of  Belgian  art  of  that  time.  We  note,  almost  with 
wonder,  how  the  Old  Dutch  School  proper  is  nearing  its  end  while 
still  preserving  its  ancient  virtues.  There  is  a  change  to  a  new  style 
and  a  turning  to  new  themes;  but  in  Memling  it  has  an  artist  who 
is  more  than  a  mere  master  of  technique.  This  technical  ability  was 
an  ever-present  danger  with  the  Old  Dutch  painters;  it  threatened 
to  smother  their  purely  artistic  genius.  Memling  saved  them  and 
reasserted  the  productive  strength  of  the  Dutch. 

The  vital  principle,  so  to  speak,  which  enabled  this  small,  and 
yet  highly  cultured  nation,  to  attain  to  the  front  rank  in  the  art  of 
northern  Europe,  obtains  no  more  important  expression  than  in  this 
great  altarpiece  of  St.  John's  Hospital.  Memling  repeats  the  mo- 
tive he  employed  ten  years  before  in  the  Donne  painting,  but  he  re- 
turns to  it  as  a  ripe  artist.  Once  more  the  Virgin  is  presented  as 
throned  and  surrounded  by  saints,  and  once  more  the  two  St.  Johns 
are  witnesses  to  the  solemn  act;  but  the  treatment  is  now  altogether 
different.  It  is  far  freer  and  everything  is  more  concentrated.  And 
it  is  not  because  he  painted  on  a  larger  canvas,  but  because  he  had 
attained  greater  mastery  over  his  art  that  he  here  evinces  an  inner 
freedom  and  a  finer  power  of  composition  with  such  extraordinary 
spontaneity  of  manner.  In  imitation,  possibly,  of  the  Ghent  altar- 
piece,  Memling  here  excludes  all  secular  touches  from  the  centre 
piece,  which  is  given  over  entirely  to  the  glorification  of  the  Holy 
Virgin  and  St.  Catherine.  The  portraits  are  relegated  to  the  side 
pictures,  so  that  the  main  theme  acquires  a  religious  and  also  artistic 
unity  which  marked  the  first  great  masterpiece  of  this  school. 

Important  as  this  point  is,  it  gains  in  value  from  the  fact  that 
the  arrangement  everywhere  evinces  a  desire  for  concentration.  The 
two  St.  Johns  are  stepping  from  the  wings  into  the  centre  picture, 
becoming  thus  participants  in  the  event,  while  leaving  room  for 
Memling's  story-telling  talent  in  picturing  the  more  important  epi- 
sodes in  the  lives  of  the  two  saints.  Once  more  the  artist's  joy  in  the 
elegancies  of  life  are  shown  in  the  costumes  of  the  saints  about  the 
Madonna,  which  are  worn  with  dignity  and  yet  charming  grace. 
If  Jan  Van  Eyck,  as  has  been  said,  transplanted  the  inhabitants  of 

14 


Heaven  to  the  earth,  surely,  Memling  brought  them  closer  to  us  by 
the  power  of  his  personal  poetic  feeling.  The  landscape  is  in  har- 
mony with  the  rest  of  the  picture,  and  is  visible  in  a  number  of 
charming  views  from  between  the  columns  which  support  the  hall. 
The  figures  are  no  longer,  as  in  the  older  pictures,  arranged  stiffly 
side  by  side,  but  in  an  attractive  variation  of  tall  and  short  behind 
one  another,  in  circular  effect,  which  gives  a  feeling  of  movement. 
This  is  an  important  change  from  the  style  of  the  first  half  of  the 
century  when  the  figures  were  disposed  purely  empirically  in  the 
foreground.  Memling  had  outgrown  these  primitive  conditions  and 
took  the  first  step  towards  a  filling  of  space  as  depth;  so  that  his  fig- 
ures stand  out  more  rounded  and  freer  of  motion  than  had  formerly 
been  the  case.  Whether  Memling  alone  took  this  step  is  not  known, 
but  he  certainly  shows  a  progress  in  painting  which  is  not  evident 
in  the  other  great  Dutch  masters  of  his  time.  That  peculiar  virtu- 
osity, owing  to  an  over-refinement  of  the  pictorial  sense,  which  is 
so  marked  a  characteristic  of  this  period  of  Dutch  art,  while  present 
in  Memling  also,  is  in  him  not  disagreeable  but  rather  interesting. 
In  the  right  inside  wing  of  this  altarpiece,  St.  John's  vision  of  the 
heavenly  Jerusalem  is  reflected  in  the  water.  The  reflection,  though 
it  is  emphasized,  is  treated  with  a  fine  artistic  sense.  The  outer  wings 
are  also  remarkable,  and  contain  perhaps  the  best  portraits  by  Mem- 
ling we  possess. 

A  year  after  the  painting  of  this  masterpiece,  Memling,  in 
1480,  executed  a  much  smaller  picture  in  the  style  of  the  miniature 
painters.  It  is  known  as  "The  Seven  Joys  of  the  Virgin,"  and  is 
now  in  the  Pinakothek  at  Munich.  This  marvellously  fine  painting 
has  been  the  subject  of  much  speculation  as  to  whether  or  no  it  is  by 
Memling.  Opinion  is  now,  however,  confirmed  that  it  is  by  this 
master,  though  as  a  painting  it  is  not  held  in  very  high  esteem,  prob- 
ably, because  its  composition  is  foreign  to  our  present-day  tastes. 
The  canvas  is  about  six  feet  wide  and  three  feet  high.  The  theme, 
simple  in  itself,  has  been  carefully  elaborated  by  the  artist,  who 
pictures  here  the  entire  journey  of  the  Magi,  from  their  setting  out 
for  Bethlehem  to  their  return  home.  A  large  number  of  events  in 
the  life  of  Christ  are  also  depicted.  The  whole  is  crowded  into  one 
small  surface  without  any  unity  other  than  that  given  it  by  the  frame. 
In  spite,  however,  of  these  defects,  the  picture  is  a  proof  of  the  mani- 
fold ways  of  art-expression,  and  seems  to  justify  itself  by  its  own 
artistic  logic. 

Evidently,  what  Memling  intended  was  not  unity  of  compo- 
»5 


sition  but  artistic  unity.  He  not  only  attained  this  but  supported 
it  and  elucidated  it  by  the  details  of  the  Biblical  story.  There  is  a 
clearness  of  construction  in  it  which  is  truly  marvellous,  achieving, 
by  his  creative  ability,  intelligibility  and  artistic  expression.  While 
the  scenes  are  varied,  Memling  made  such  use  of  the  different  sto- 
ries as  to  connect  the  manifold  into  a  kind  of  ring;  and  the  land- 
scape, heavily  treated,  removes  the  work  from  the  class  of  minia- 
tures and  gives  it  the  impressiveness  of  a  fine  painting.  It  is  said 
that  Moritz  Von  Schwind  admired  this  work  greatly.  Memling's 
art  of  telling  a  story  appealed  to  this  most  lovable  of  German  Ro- 
mantic painters,  who  found  in  him  a  poetic  spirit  akin  to  his  own. 
In  the  background  gigantic  mountain  tops  rise,  on  which  stand  the 
wise  men  from  the  East  questioning  the  stars.  They  then  begin 
their  journey  and,  in  small  figures  which  appear  only  as  color  spots 
on  the  surface  of  the  picture,  the  wayfarers  pass  along  the  wind- 
ing roads  until  they  arrive  at  Jerusalem,  entering  the  courtyard 
of  the  Tetrarch  on  splendid,  spirited  horses.  Then  they  inquire 
of  the  workers  in  the  fields  until  the  last  stretch  of  road  leading 
to  Bethlehem  is  reached.  The  chief  scene,  in  which  is  shown  their 
homage  to  the  Child,  is  most  dignified.  Close  to  this  scene,  on  the 
right  and  left,  are  those  genre-like  groups  which  play  such  a  charm- 
ing part  in  Memling's  works.  To  the  left  is  a  troop  of  Moorish 
slaves  in  white  gowns  with  a  figure  anticipating  the  Christian  saint. 
To  the  right  is  the  finely  beautiful  group  of  horses  which  Schwind, 
apparently,  took  for  his  model  for  his  famous  picture  in  the  Schack 
Gallery.  The  quick  narrative  demands  that  the  Magi  shall  not  stay 
long  at  the  stable,  so  they  are  seen  to  mount  their  horses  and,  with 
flying  colors,  the  procession  moves  on  and  is  lost  between  the  hills 
to  emerge  again  by  the  sea  where  they  take  ship  for  home. 

To  the  adult  spectator  who  retained  enough  of  the  naivete  of 
his  childhood  days  to  follow  the  scenes  of  this  picture  with  devotion, 
it  must  have  been  with  a  sense  of  keen  enjoyment  that  he  so  unex- 
pectedly caught  again  a  glimpse  of  his  own  early  life.  But  the 
painting  is  remarkable  in  so  many  ways — in  technique,  in  the  dis- 
posal of  the  small  spaces,  in  the  landscape  and  the  numerous  figures — 
that  it  is  a  source  of  continual  interest  and  delight. 

The  subject  of  the  Three  Wise  Men  of  the  East  was  a  favorite 
one  with  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  century  artists,  probably  because 
the  Quattrocento  art  of  the  Netherlands  was  greatly  influenced  by 
mystery  and  passion  plays,  and  also  because  the  story  afforded  un- 
usual opportunities  for  splendor  of  effect  and  treatment.  Memling 

16 


painted  the  subject  again  and  again.  The  comparatively  small  pic- 
ture in  the  Hospital  of  St.  John  at  Bruges  which  dates  from  1479, 
contains  a  centre  piece  of  the  Adoration.  The  left  inner  wing  pic- 
tures the  Nativity,  while  on  the  right  is  shown  the  Presentation  in 
the  Temple.  The  outer  wings  give  John  the  Baptist  and  St.  Veron- 
ica. This  small  altarpiece  was  a  gift  to  the  Hospital  made  by  Jan 
Floreins,  its  treasurer.  Unfortunately  the  painting  has  suffered 
greatly  from  injury  and  bad  restoration.  In  certain  respects  its 
composition  is  similar  to  the  one  at  .Munich.  The  scene  in  the  right 
wing  is  very  akin  in  treatment  to  the  same  scene  by  Rogier  Van  Der 
Weyden,  so  much  so,  that  it  has  been  put  forward  as  an  argument 
for  assuming  that  Memling  was  that  master's  pupil. 

The  Adoration  in  the  right  wing  is  found  again  in  a  small  paint- 
ing in  the  Clemens  Collection  at  Munich,  which  is  of  a  very  delicate 
and  soft  character,  perhaps  too  much  so  for  Memling.  In  the  Prado 
we  meet  with  the  entire  altarpiece,  for  the  second  time,  in  an  en- 
larged form,  but  with  so  many  changes  in  details  that  it  is  out  of 
the  question  to  consider  the  one  a  mere  copy  of  the  other.  The 
Madrid  painting  is  cold,  and  the  treatment  of  the  perspective  shows 
such  progress  that  we  are  justified  in  believing  it  to  be  by  the  hand 
of  an  imitator  of  Memling. 

The  Bruges  Hospital  possesses  also  two  other  paintings  which 
belong  to  the  year  1480.  Of  these  a  "  Lamentation,"  a  small  trip- 
tych ordered  by  Adrian  Rein,  is  remarkably  like  the  work  of  Dirk 
Bouts.  The  St.  Barbara  in  the  right  wing  is,  in  its  way,  the  original 
of  the  fashionable  ladies  of  Quintin  Matsys. 

Other  variations  on  the  theme  of  the  Seven  Wise  Men  arc  in 
the  Kaufmann  Collection  at  Berlin  and  the  Palazzo  Doria  at  Rome. 
The  Berlin  painting  bears  all  the  marks  of  Memling's  style,  but  the 
Roman  picture  is  probably  not  altogether  the  work  of  his  hand. 

The  two  portraits  in  the  Bruckenthal  Collection  at  Hermann- 
stadt  are  among  the  best  we  possess  of  examples  of  portrait  painting 
by  Memling.  They  evidently  belong  to  a  later  period,  evincing  as 
they  do  a  decided  accent  of  the  personal  and  conventional  elements. 
Quite  a  number  of  such  portraits  exist,  foremost  among  which  are 
those  of  the  Moreel  family.  In  the  Brussels  Gallery  is  the  one  of 
Willcm  Moreel  and  his  wife  Barbara;  in  the  Bruges  Hospital,  under 
the  title  of  "  A  Sibyl,1'  is  a  portrait  of  Maria  Moreel,  a  daughter  of 
Willem  and  Barbara.  This  latter  is  a  beautiful  painting  and  shows 
a  great  change  in  technique.  In  the  disposition  of  its  lines  and 
masses  it  foreshadows  the  coming  of  the  northern  Renaissance.  In 

17 


the  Altarpiece  of  St.  Christopher,  painted  by  Memling  in  1484  and 
now  in  the  Municipal  Collection  at  Bruges,  the  entire  Moreel  fam- 
ily are  represented.  It  is  not  a  very  pleasing  work,  but  there  is  much 
charm  in  the  faces,  especially  in  those  of  the  boys  and  girls,  which 
show  some  reluctance  on  their  part  to  submit  to  the  religious 
solemnity  of  the  occasion. 

A  prominent  work  by  Memling  of  his  later  period  is  the  great 
altarpiece,  in  the  Louvre,  of  the  family  of  Jacob  Floreins.  In  its 
color  effect  and  rather  unskilful  treatment  it  appears  somewhat 
cold  to  us,  but  this  was  not  the  original  intention.  The  old  motive 
of  assembling  the  donors  about  the  Madonna  in  a  Church  is  here 
altered.  The  open  hall  of  the  Church  is  made  now  to  fill  out  the 
background  while  the  saints  and  donors  are  placed  in  the  fore- 
ground. 

The  chief  work,  however,  of  this  last  phase  of  Memling's  art 
is  the  Diptych  of  Martin  Nienwenhove,  painted  in  1487.  The  left 
wing  is  devoted  to  the  Madonna  and  Child.  In  the  right  is  a  half- 
length  portrait  of  the  praying  donor.  Martin  Nienwenhove,  then 
twenty-two  years  old,  who  became,  shortly  after,  the  Burgomaster 
of  Bruges,  is  here  shown  in  the  fulness  of  his  youthful  vigor.  The 
work  shows  unmistakably  the  freedom  Memling  had  now  attained. 
There  is  a  naturalness  about  it  which  distinguishes  it  utterly  from 
the  almost  frightful  fidelity  of  the  portraits  of  the  old  school.  The 
left  wing  shows  the  Madonna  in  the  act  of  giving  an  apple  to  the 
Child  seated  on  a  cushion  in  front  of  her.  As  is  often  the  case  with 
Memling  the  countenance  of  the  Virgin  is  somewhat  heavy,  but 
the  treatment  of  the  painting  as  a  whole  is  rich  and  elegant  to  a 
degree.    The  old-time  simplicity  and  severity  are  absent. 

In  1487  also,  Memling  painted  the  portrait  of  the  young  man, 
now  in  the  Uffizi  Gallery  at  Florence,  who,  according  to  Warburg, 
is  Benedetto  Portinari.  There  is  a  counterpart  of  him  in  the  "  Vir- 
gin and  Child  "  in  the  Kaiser  Friedrich  Museum  at  Berlin.  The 
transformation  which  had  taken  place  in  Memling's  art  is  to  be  seen 
more  in  this  Madonna  than  even  in  the  portrait.  The  Virgin  is 
now  a  slender  maiden,  and  though  the  painting  is  no  longer  over- 
loaded with  columns  and  arches,  yet  the  total  effect  is  one  of  spa- 
ciousness and  opulence. 

In  1489  was  dedicated  an  oaken  shrine  in  St.  John's  Hospital 
at  Bruges.  The  shrine  is  decorated  with  numerous  paintings  which 
have  always  been  attributed  to  Memling  and  which  have  exceeded 
in  popularity  all  Memling's  works.  Without  doubt,  the  popularity  is 

18 


deserved,  for  the  work  is  very  beautiful.  Yet  it  is  not  certain  that  all 
the  paintings  are  by  the  master. 

The  shrine  is  executed  in  the  usual  style  of  a  sort  of  Gothic 
church  with  high  sloping  roofs.  On  each  of  the  longer  sides  are 
three  pictures  and  on  the  smaller  sides  two.  On  each  of  the  roofs 
are  affixed  two  medallions  with  angels,  and  between  them  is  an  oval 
painting,  one  representing  the  Coronation  of  the  Virgin  and  the 
other  St.  Ursula  with  the  Virgins.  The  medallions  are  in  Memling's 
style,  but  certainly  not  by  him;  probably  by  some  assistant  in  his 
studio.  The  two  paintings  on  the  smaller  sides,  however,  are  of  high 
artistic  merit  and  are  the  work  of  the  master  himself.  One  shows 
the  Madonna  with  two  ladies,  probably  the  donors,  and  the  other 
is  again  a  representation  of  St.  Ursula  and  her  attendants.  The  man- 
ner of  their  treatment  and  the  quiet  of  the  moods  realized  are  alike 
admirable.  The  figure  of  St.  Ursula  is  specially  elegant.  She  is 
shown  as  a  princess  robed  in  the  same  rich  garments  that  St.  Cathe- 
rine wears  in  the  great  altarpiece  of  1479. 

The  fame  of  the  shrine,  however,  rests  not  on  these  two  side 
paintings,  beautiful  as  they  are,  but  on  the  six  paintings  on  the  two 
longer  sides,  which  tell  the  story  of  the  legend  of  St.  Ursula.  Their 
charm  is  captivating.  Unfortunately,  they  are  not  in  a  good  state 
of  preservation,  and  this  prevents  a  full  estimate  of  their  execution. 
The  first  of  these  paintings  depicts  the  saintly  princess  arriving  at 
Cologne.  Ursula  is  just  leaving  the  ship  and  is  descending  the  steps 
to  meet  the  Princess  Sigillindis,  who  welcomes  her  with  outstretched 
arms.  In  the  most  lively  and  vivacious  manner  all  court  pomp  and 
ceremonial  have  been  avoided,  remarkable  and  meritorious  in  Mem- 
ling,  who  was  so  fond  of  picturing  scenes  and  circumstances  of  great 
occasion  in  all  their  royal  display.  Almost  miraculous  is  the  man- 
ner in  which  Ursula,  in  the  midst  of  the  busy  turmoil  of  the  unload- 
ing of  the  ship  and  the  skurrying  of  the  servants  and  maids,  is  made 
to  stand  out  as  the  central  figure  and  as  if  unmoved  by  the  bustle  and 
noise.  In  the  background  rises  the  cathedral  of  Cologne,  a  presenta- 
tion so  faithful  that  it  could  only  have  been  made  by  one  who  was 
well  acquainted  with  it. 

The  second  picture,  showing  the  arrival  at  Basle,  is  entirely 
different  in  composition.  The  ships  which  in  the  first  picture  were 
placed  on  the  side,  are  now  set  forward  into  the  foreground.  The 
purpose  here  is  less  with  the  fact  of  the  arrival  and  more  with 
eager  longing  of  Ursula  for  Rome.  The  artist,  by  this  motive,  sug- 
gests the  further  journey  of  the  saintly  lady  across  the  Alps. 

T9 


The  third  painting  is  perhaps  the  most  beautiful  of  the  six  and, 
in  view  of  the  extremely  charming  and  refined  composition,  it  is  not 
easy  to  question  its  genuineness.  Out  of  the  shadows  of  a  large 
and  centrally  placed  baptistry  church  where,  to  the  right  in  the 
foreground,  the  heathen  companions  of  the  saint  can  be  seen  being 
received  into  the  fold  of  the  Catholic  Church,  Pope  Cyriacus  with 
his  suite  steps  to  the  entrance  to  receive  the  kneeling  Ursula  and  to 
give  her  his  apostolic  benediction.  It  is  difficult  to  describe  Mem- 
ling's  consummate  art  with  which  he  wove  quite  opposing  psycho- 
logical motives  into  a  unity  of  truly  bewitching  charm.  The  beauty 
of  the  royal  daughter,  her  aristocratic  bearing,  the  splendor  of  her 
dress,  all  stand  out;  and  yet  she  is  kneeling  in  simple  humility  with 
uplifted  hands,  in  prayer,  before  the  Church's  sovereign.  A  true 
father  of  Christendom  is  this  eminently  dignified  man,  more  impos- 
ing in  his  personality  than  he  is  in  his  regalia.  He  extends  to  Ursula 
his  right  hand  in  blessing  in  a  curiously  solemn  manner,  as  if  he  knew 
already  what  the  saintly  lady  did  not  know,  namely,  that  her  bloom- 
ing young  life  was  destined  soon  to  perish. 

In  the  fourth  picture  Ursula  is  seen  departing  from  Basle,  and 
the  Pope,  with  his  cardinals,  is  shown  as  about  to  accompany  her 
to  her  death.  Finally,  the  fifth  picture  depicts  Ursula's  fated  arrival 
at  Cologne,  where  all  are  received  by  the  archers  and  armed  knights 
and  murdered  as  they  sit  between  the  narrow  spaces  of  the  ships. 
Ursula  herself  is  again  made  the  central  figure.  She,  who  played 
so  sweetly  gentle  a  part  in  the  previous  story,  stands  now  among  her 
companions  consoling  them  in  their  last  moments. 

The  sixth  painting  must  be  given  second  place  to  the  third  in 
excellence.  It  forms  a  happy  climax,  the  only  possible  conclusion 
to  the  pathetic  tale  so  beautifully  told.  The  saintly  woman  stands 
now  a  prisoner,  though  unbound  and  unrestrained.  Before  her  is 
her  destroyer  and  the  tents  and  warriors  of  her  enemy.  The  king 
himself,  clad  in  splendid  armor,  has  stepped  forward  and  is  begging 
her  to  comply  and  be  saved.  He  is  evidently  deeply  distressed  that 
such  beauty  and  grace  should  perish.  But  Ursula,  without  even 
glancing  at  him,  declines  with  a  wave  of  her  hand,  and  awaits  quietly 
expectant  the  arrow  which  an  archer  is  aiming  at  her.  In  this  novel 
and  sharply  painted  manner  the  legend  closes,  told  in  a  way  which  no 
other  story  of  this  legend-filled  age  was  ever  told.  Whether  these 
paintings  are  by  Memling  or  no  remains  doubtful;  but  whoever 
executed  them  they  undoubtedly  possess  a  refinement  of  composition 
and  execution  which  must  ever  remain  a  delight  to  the  eye  and  heart. 

20 


What  Memling  himself  could  do  at  this  period  is  to  be  seen  in 
the  "  Passion  of  Christ,"  now  in  the  Turin  Gallery.  It  was  do- 
nated by  an  Italian,  whose  portrait  as  well  as  that  of  his  wife,  is  to 
be  seen  on  the  sides.  It  is  generally  held  that  this  painting  ante- 
dates the  Munich  "  Virgin  "  of  1480,  but  the  advanced  style  of  its 
execution  gives  every  reason  for  assigning  it  to  as  late  a  period  in 
Memling's  life  as  possible.  In  general  conception  it  is  the  same  as 
that  of  the  Munich  painting,  but  the  arrangement  is  not  so  tasteful. 
The  large,  impressive  landscape  which  is  so  pleasing  a  factor  in  the 
Munich  picture  is  absent  from  the  one  in  Turin.  Here  the  city  of 
Jerusalem  is  made  the  scene  of  the  action.  Although  this  city  mo- 
tive is  not  favorable  to  Memling's  genius,  he  yet  treats  it  with  great 
facility  and  skill.  He  places  the  spectator,  as  it  were,  in  a  position 
to  look  over  the  walls  into  the  city,  and  the  manner  in  which  he 
does  this  goes  to  show  how  far  Memling  had  advanced  in  perspective 
over  the  Old  Dutch  School.  The  view  of  the  exterior  of  the  city 
is  not  treated  in  the  usual  accurate  Gothic  style,  because  Jerusalem 
was  a  city  of  cupolas,  so  that  in  place  of  closed  houses  and  palaces 
Memling  depicts  open  halls,  each  of  which  was  to  be  the  stage  for  a 
special  scene.  The  task  was  a  difficult  one,  but  the  artist  accom- 
plished it  with  the  certainty  of  great  skill. 

The  principal  feature  of  this  interesting  picture,  which  is  the 
more  impressive  the  more  we  contemplate  it,  is  the  treatment  of  the 
figures.  Often  as  Memling  evinces  unusual  freshness  of  treatment 
there  is  no  instance  in  which  he  displayed  such  freedom  of  move- 
ment as  in  this  painting.  Indeed,  there  is  no  other  picture  in  the 
entire  realm  of  Old  Dutch  art  to  equal  it  in  this  respect.  Such 
accomplishment  belongs,  undoubtedly,  to  his  later  period,  for  it  is 
more  akin  to  Renaissance  than  to  Gothic  art.  In  color  also  this 
Turin  painting  is  a  development  to  the  perfect.  The  figures  are 
still  in  the  Quattrocento  style  of  coloring,  but  where  possible  he  takes 
the  opportunity  to  indulge  himself  in  delicate  nuances,  even  to  the 
painting  of  the  uncertain  light  of  dawn.  The  Dutch  artists  of  the 
Quattrocento  achieved  their  splendid  coloring  at  the  sacrifice  of 
truth,  and  even  Van  Eyck,  in  his  incomprehensible  marvels  of 
technique,  was  not  the  great  realist  in  color  that  he  was  in  form  and 
figure.  It  is  this  departure  from  the  manner  of  the  older  period 
that  marks  Memling  as  inaugurating  the  new  art  which  was  to  fol- 
low the  Old  Dutch. 

It  has  been  a  matter  for  discussion  as  to  whether  or  no  Memling 
was  acquainted  with  Italian  art.    He  lived  to  within  a  few  years 

21 


of  the  sixteenth  century,  the  period  when  Old  Dutch  art  began  to 
come  under  Italian  influence.  In  the  Court  of  Charles  the  Bold  he 
must  have  met  with  examples  of  the  works  of  southern  artists,  since 
this  prince  often  commissioned  such  works.  Bruges,  also,  was  a 
cosmopolitan  city  housing  numerous  rich  Italian  residents  who,  no 
doubt,  imported  specimens  of  the  art  of  their  native  land.  So  that 
we  may  conclude  that  Memling  was  not  a  stranger  to  such  art.  For 
many  years  Memling  showed  no  trace  of  having  been  influenced  by 
it.  It  is  only  in  his  later  works  that  we  meet  with  motives  which 
would  indicate  an  imitation  of  Renaissance.  We  know  that  the 
Dutch  painters  were  fond  of  framing  their  works  by  painting 
architectural  frames  round  their  margins.  This  occurs  in  Rogier 
Van  Der  Weyden  as  well  as  in  Dirk  Bouts.  In  Memling's  later 
paintings,  although  the  Gothic  arches  are  still  retained,  they  are 
decorated  with  putti,  or  little  Cupids,  which  are  figured  as  standing 
above  the  capitals  or  lying  in  the  curve  of  the  arch  festooning  gar- 
lands. This  is  a  genuine  Italian  motive,  but  Memling  may  have 
found  it  in  the  illustrated  title-pages  of  books. 

Among  the  paintings  so  ornamented  are  the  triptych,  in  the 
Louvre,  with  the  centre  picture  of  "  The  Resurrection,"  and  the  altar- 
piece  in  the  Vienna  Hofmuseum.  The  inside  wings  of  the  Vienna 
painting  represent,  beneath  high  arches,  John  the  Baptist  and  John 
the  Evangelist.  Comparing  these  with  the  very  similar  painting  in 
the  London  Gallery  we  find  that  the  latter,  an  earlier  work,  is  fresher 
in  composition  and  conception,  and  the  figures  are  much  more  care- 
fully executed.  But  the  perspective  is  indistinct  and  the  architecture 
mere  ornament.  In  the  Vienna  picture,  on  the  contrary,  the  figure 
is  in  absolute  harmony  with  the  architecture  and  there  is  a  far 
greater  artistic  freedom  and  clarity.  In  the  Uffizi  Gallery  there  is 
a  slightly  altered  copy  of  this  Vienna  altarpiece  in  which  an  angel 
takes  the  place  of  the  donor.  The  execution  is,  however,  hard  and 
pedantic,  and  would  justify  us  in  assuming  that  it  was  not  by  Mem- 
ling himself,  but  rather  emanated  from  his  studio. 

A  painting  by  Memling  with  the  latest  date  we  know  is  the 
Crucifixion  altarpiece  in  the  Church  of  St.  Mary  at  Liibeck.  It  was 
painted  in  1491 ,  and  is  convincing  proof  that  the  old  Dutch  art  of 
the  early  years  of  the  sixteenth  century  had  succeeded,  not  only  in 
avoiding  mere  formalism,  but  had  turned  to  new  methods  with  re- 
newed vigor  and  zest.  The  painting,  until  lately,  was  considered 
a  Memling,  but  opinion  has  now  changed  and  few  critics  give  him 

11 


the  credit  for  it.  Its  composition  seems  to  have  been  so  attractive 
that  it  found  many  imitators. 

Memling  died  on  August  1 1,  1494.  The  city  in  which  he  lived 
he  helped  to  make  famous  and  a  Mecca  in  the  world  of  art.  But 
the  downfall  of  Bruges  was  decreed.  Neither  her  political  power 
nor  her  position  in  art  could  compete  with  that  of  Antwerp.  It  is 
sad  to  think  that  Memling  died  at  so  comparatively  an  early  age, 
but  we  may  console  ourselves  with  the  further  thought  that  he  died 
in  the  fulness  of  his  strength  and  while  Bruges,  his  second  home, 
beautiful  even  to-day,  still  retained  her  ancient  splendor. 


*3 


ABBREVIATIONS  AND  EXPLANATIONS 


H.  =  Height 
B.  =  Width 


Auf  Holz  =  oii  wood 

Auf  Leinwand  =  on  canvas 

Auf  Schiefer  =  on  slate 


The  figures  giving  the  sizes  of  the  paintings  stand  for  metres 


1 


*Chatsworth,  Duke  of  Devonshire 

Johannes  der  Taufer  Die  Madonna  mit 

St.  John  Baptist  Saint  Jean  Baptiste  The  Virgin  with  saints  and  donors 

Nach  elner  Aufnahme  > 


iligen  und  Stiftern 

168  La  Vierge  avec  des  saints  et  des  donateurs 

inz  llanfstacngl,  Munchen 


Johannes  der  Evangelist 
St.  John  the  Evangelist  Saint  Jean  l'Evangeliste 


2/3 


4 


Memllng  2 


5 


6 


7 


Danzig,  Marienkirche 

Die  Schar  der  Seligen 

(Detail  aus  dem  Mittelbild  zum  „Jfingsten  Gericht") 
The  group  of  the  blessed  jjm  Le  groupe  des  bienheureux 

(Detail  of  the  central  picture  of  „The  last  judgment")  (Detail  du  tableau  central  du  „Jugement  dernier") 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  vonJR.  Th.  Kuhns  Erben,  Danzig 


10 


12 


Danzig,  Morlcnklrchc 

Die  Pforte  des  Paradicses  (untercr  Tcil) 

(Detail  vom  linken  l  lugelbild  zuin  .Jiingsten  Ocrichl") 
The  entrance  to  the  paradise  (lower  part)        „    ....  L'entree  au  paradis  (partie  inferieure) 

(Detail  of  the  left  wing,  p.  12)  (Detail  du  volet  a  gauche,  p.  12) 

Nnch  clncr  Aiittmhnie  von  R.  Tli.  Kuhns  BjtbCD,  Danzig 


Memling  3 


13 


Danzig,  Marlenkirche 

Die  Pforte  des  Paradieses  (oberer  Teil) 

(Detail  vom  linken  Flugelbild  zum  „Jungsten  Gericht") 
The  entrance  to  the  paradise  (upper  part)         „    ....  L'entree  au  paradis  (partie  superieure) 

(Detail  of  the  left  wing,  p.  12)  "'  "  (Detail  du  volet  a  gauche,  p.  12) 


14 


15 


*  Wien,  Galerie  Liechtenstein  H.  0,88,  B.  0,53 

Madonna  mit  dem  Stifter  und  dem  heiligen  Antonius 
The  Virgin  and  Child,  the  donor  UJ2       La  Vierge  avec  l'Enfant,  le  donateur 

and  St.  Antonius  et  Saint  Antoine 


Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  Franz  Hanfstaengl,  Miinchen 


17 


18 


19 


20 


Memiing  4 


21 


22 


23 


24 


Mem  ling  S 


25 


27 


30 


31 


*Mfinchen,  Alte  Pinakothek 


The  seven  joys  of  the  Virgin 


34 


Memliiig  7 


35 


36 


37 


jnchen,  Alte  Pinakothek 

Die  sieben  Freuden  Maria  (Ausschnitt:  Der  Tod  Maria) 

The  seven  joys  of  the  Virgin                 1480  Les  sept  joies  de  la  Vierge 

(Detail:  The  death  of  the  Virgin)  (Detail:  La  mort  de  la  Vierge) 


uckmann  A.-G.,  Munchen 


38 


Die  sieben  Frcuden  Maria  (Ausschnitt) 
The  seven  joys  of  the  Virgin  1480  Les  sept  joies  de  la  Vierge 


I  ran/  I l;iiiKt;n  nt;l,  Muiu  lu  n 


Memling  8 


44 


48 


Madrid,  Prndo-Museum 

Die  Geburt  Christi 
The  nativity  of  Christ  La  naissance  du  Christ 


Memling  9 


Die  Anbetung  der  heiligen  drei  Konige 

Um  1500 


N'jcli  i-ini-r  Aufnuhnie 


D.  Anderson,  Rom 


H.  0,9."t,  B.  Mlttelbild  1,47,  Flugel  |e  0,73 

Die  Darstellung  im  Tempel 
The  presentation  in  the  temple  La  presentation  au  temple 


45/46 


17 


Memling  10 


49 


•Brugge,  Johanneshospital 

Der  Stifter  mit  dem  heiligen  Adrian 
The  donor  with  Le  donateur  et 

St.  Adrian  Saint  Adrien 


Die  Beweii 

The  lamentation  over  Christ  1 
Der  sogen.  Altar 
The  so-called  altar-piece  of  Adriaen  Reins 

Nach  elner  Aufnahme  von  Braun 


u  Cliristi 

Le  Christ  pleure  par  les  siens 
I  Adriaen  Reins 

Autel  dit  d'Adriaen  Reins 
Iment  *  Clc,  Dornoch  (Elsass) 


11.0,4-1,  I).  Mlttclblld  0,36,  FlOgd  |«  0,14 

Die  lieilige  Barbara 
St.  Barbara  Sainte  Harbe 


50/51 


Memling  11 


53 


Hermannstadt,  Gymnasium  H.  0,44,  B.  0,33 

Bildnis  eines  Stifters  mit  einem  Kinde 
Portrait  of  a  donor  with  a  child  Um  1485  Portrait  d'un  donateur  avec  un  enfant 


Nach  eincr  Aulnahme  von  F.  Bruckmann  A.-G.,  Miinchcn 


Hermonnstndl,  Gymnnslum  11.0,44,  II. 

Bildnis  einer  Stifterin 
Portrait  of  a  female  donor  Um  1485  Portrait  d'une  donatrice 

Nach  clntr  Aufnahmr  von  F.  Bruckmann  A.-Q.,  Munchen 


Memling  12 


57 


58 


59 


63 


Memling  13 


64 


Memling  11 


65 


66 


68 


69 


Berlin,  Kaiser-Frledrich-Museum  H.  0,43,  B.  0,31 

Madonna  mit  dem  Kinde 

The  Virgin  with  Child  1487  La  Vierge  et  l'Enfant 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  Franz  Hanfstaengl,  Miinchsn 


70 


71 


Mcmling  IS 


73 


•Berlin,  Kalser-Friedrich-Museum  H.  0,34,  B.  0,29 

Bildnis  eines  alten  Mannes 

Portrait  of  an  old  man  Urn  1490  Portrait  d'un  vieil  homme 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  Franz  Hantstaengl,  Mtinchen 


74 


Weibliches  Bildnis 
Portrait  of  a  woman  Um  1490  Portrait  de  temme 

Nach  cliii-r  Aulnnhmc  von  Brauti,  ClOmcnt  *  Clc,  Dornach  (Elsass) 


75 


Paris,  Louvre  H.  0,25,  B.  0,15 

Die  Verlobung  der  heiligen  Katharina 

(Linker  Fliigel  zur  folgenden  Tafel) 
Um  1485 

The  myslic  marriage  of  St. Catherine  Le  mariage  mystique  de  Sainte  Catherine 

(Left  wing  for  the  following  picture)  (Volet  a  gauche  du  tableau  suivant) 

Nach  eincr  Aufnahme  von  Braun,  Clement  &  Cie.,  Dornach  (Elsass) 

76 


Paris,  Louvre  H.  0,55,  B.  0,15 

Stifter  mil  Johannes  dem  Tflufer 

(Rechter  Flugel  zur  vorausgehenden  Tafel) 
A  donor  with  St.  John  Baptist  Um  1485       Un  donateur  et  Saint  Jean  Baptiste 

(Right  wing  for  the  preceeding  picture)  (Volet  ;i  droite  du  tableau  precedent) 

Nach  olucr  Autnahmc  von  Fratclll  Allnnrl.  Iloreni 


77 


;  Brugge,  Johanneshospita!  H.  0,87,  B.  0,33,  L.  0,91 

Der  Reliquienschrein  der  heiligen  Ursula  (rechte  Seite) 
The  shrine  of  St.  Ursula  Um  1488  La  chasse  de  Sainte  Ursule 

(Right  side)  (Partie  a  droite) 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  Braun,  Clement  &  Cie.,  Dornach  (Elsass) 


78 


Dcr  Reliquicnsclirein  der  heiligen  Ursula  (linkc  Seite) 
The  shrine  of  St.  Ursula  Um  1488  La  chassc  de  Sainte  Ursule 

(Left  side)  (Partie  u  gauche) 


Nach  clncr  Aufnalimc  von  Braun,  Clement  *  Cie.,  Dornacli  (Elsass) 


so 


Bri'iRKc,  Johanneshospltal 

Madonna  mit  dem  Kindc  und  Sliftcrinncn 
(Vom  Ursula-Schrein) 

The  Virgin  with  Child  Um  1488  La  Vierge  avec  1'Enfant 

and  donors  et  des  donatrices 

(Detail  of  the  shrine)  (Detail  de  la  chasse) 

Noch  clncr  Aufnnhmi'  von  Bruiin,  CMmenl  *  Cic,  Dornnch  (Elsass) 


Memling  16 


81 


Brugge,  Johanneshospital 

Die  Ankunft  der  heiligen  Ursula  in  Koln 

(Vom  Ursula-Schrein) 

The  arrival  of  St.  Ursula  in  Cologne  Um  1488         L'arrivee  de  Sainte  Ursule  a  Cologne 

(Detail  of  the  shrine)  (Detail  de  la  chasse) 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  Braun,  Clement  &  Cie.,  Dornach  (Elsass) 


82 


MriiKKC,  Jnhanni-shospllal 

Die  Ankunft  der  heiligen  Ursula  in  Basel 

(Vom  Ursula-Schrein) 

The  arrival  of  St.  Ursula  in  Basel  Utn  1488  L'arrivee  de  Sainte  Ursule  a  Bale 

(Detail  of  the  shrine)  (Detail  de  la  chiisse) 

Nach  clncr  Aulnalinic  von  Braun,  Clement  *  Clc,  Dornoch  (Elsass) 


83 


Brugge,  Johanneshospital 

Der  Empfang  der  heiligen  Ursula  in  Rom 
(Vom  Ursula-Schrein) 

The  reception  of  St.  Ursula  in  Rome  Um  1488       La  reception  de  Sainte  Ursule  a  Rome 

(Detail  of  the  shrine)  (Detail  de  la  chasse) 

Nach  elner  Aufnahme  von  Braun,  Clement  &  Cie.,  Dornach  (Elsass) 


84 


Brugge,  Johanneshospital 

Das  Martyrium  der  elftausend  Jungfrauen 
(Vom  Ursula-Schrein) 

The  martyrdom  of  the  eleven  thousand  virgins     Urn  1488  Le  martyre  des  onze  mille  vierges 

(Detail  of  the  shrine)  (Detail  de  la  chasse) 


Nach  elner  Aufnahme  von  Braun,  Clement  4  Cie.,  Dornach  fElsass) 


Brugge,  Johanneshospital 

Die  Kronung  Maria 
(Vom  Ursula-Schrein) 

The  coronation  of  the  Virgin  Um  1488  Le  couronnement  de  la  Vierge 

(Detail  of  the  shrine)  (Detail  de  la  chasse) 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  Braun,  Clement  &  Cie.,  Dornach  (Elsass) 


88 


Briigijf,  Johanncshospltal 

Die  heilige  Ursula  mit  den  Jungfrauen 

(Vom  Ursula-Schrein) 

St.  Ursula  and  her  companions  Urn  1488  Sainte  Ursule  et  les  vierges 

(Detail  of  the  shrine)  (Detail  de  la  ch.isse) 


N.i.  h  tlnet  Aufnahnie  von  liraun,  CKmcnt  4  Clc,  Dornach  (Elsass) 


Memling  17 


89 


'Turin,  Pinakothek 

Die 

The  passion  of  Christ 


Nach  einer 


94 


95 


Turin,  Pinakothek 

Die  Passion  Christi  (Ausschnitt) 
The  passion  of  Christ  Urn  1490  La  passion  du  Christ 

(Detail)  (Detail) 


Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  D.  Anderson,  Rom 


96 


Memling  18 


97 


98 


99 


100 


101 


Liibeck,  Marienklrche  H.  2,05,  B.  1,50 

Die  Kreuzigung  Christi 
(Mittelbild  des  vollig  geoffneten  Altarwerks,  vgl.  Seite  101) 
The  crucifixion  1491  Le  crucifiement 

(The  middle  picture  of  the  altar-piece,  see  p.  101)  (Partie  centrale  de  l'autel,  voyez  p.  101) 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  Bernhard  Nohring,  Liibeck 


102 


103 


Die  Gruppe  der  fiinf  heiligen  Frauen  mit  dem  Jiinger  Johannes 
(Detail  aus  der  „Kreuzigung",  Seite  102) 
The  five  holy  women  and  St.  John  1491  Les  cinq  saintes  femmes  et  Saint  Jean 

(Detail  of  p.  102)  (Detail  de  p.  102) 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  Bernhard  Nohring,  Liibeck 


104 


Memling  19 


105 


Liibeck,  Marienkirche 

Die  Gruppe  der  urn  die  Kleider  Christi  wiirfelnden  Kriegsknechte 

(Detail  aus  der  „Kreuzigung",  Seite  102) 
1491 

The  soldiers  raffling  for  the  habit  of  Christ  Les  guerriers  jouant  aux  des  pour  l'habit  du  Christ 

(Detail  of  p.  102)  (Detail  de  p.  102) 

Nach  einer  Aufnalime  von  Bernhard  Nolirlng,  Liibeck 


106 


Der  romische  Hauptmann  inmitten  sonstiger  Zuschauer 
(Detail  aus  der  „Kreuzigung\  Seite  102) 
The  Roman  captain                               1491  Le  capitaine  rornain 

(Detail  of  p.  102)  (Detail  de  p.  102) 


Nach  eluer  Aufnahnic  von  Bcrnharil  Nohrlng,  Liibeck 


Lubeck,  Marlenklrchi 


Die  beiden  Schacher 

(Detail  aus  der  „Kreuzigung",  Seite  102) 
The  two  thieves  1491  Les  deux  larrons 

(Detail  of  p.  102)  (Detail  de  p.  102) 

Nach  einer  Autnahme  von  Bernhard  Nohring,  Lubeck 


108 


Liibeck,  Marlcnklrche  |e  H.  2,05,  I).  0,75 

Die  Kreuztragung  Christi  Die  Auferstehung  Christi 

Christ  bearing  the  cross   Le  Christ  portant  la  croix     1491     Theresurrection  of  Christ  La  resurrection  du  Christ 

(Innenfliigel  des  vollig  geoffneten  Altarwerks,  vgl.  Seite  101) 
(The  inner  wings  of  the  fully  opened  altar-piece,  see  p.  101)    (Volets  intikieurs  del'autel  ouvert  completement,  voyez  p.  101  > 

Nach  elncr  Aufnahmc  von  Bernhard  Nflhring,  Liibeck 


109 


Liibeck,  Marienkirche 


Die  Grablegung  Christi 
(Detail  aus  dem  „Auferstehungs"-Flugel,  Seite  109) 
The  sepulture  of  Christ  1491  La  sepulture  du  Christ 

(Detail  of  the  right  wing  p.  109)  (Detail  du  volet  a  droite  p.  109) 

Nach  elner  Aufnahme  von  Bernhard  Nohring,  Liibeck 


110 


Ill 


112 


Memling  20 


113 


115 


Florenz,  Ufflzlen  H.  0,97,  B.  0,43 

Madonna  mit  dem  Kinde  und  Engeln 

The  Virgin  with  Child  and  angels  Um  1500  La  Vierge  avec  l'Enfant  et  des  anges 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  D.  Anderson,  Rom 


116 


•wicn,  Hohniueun  H.0,69,  B.0,47 

Madonna  mit  dem  Kinde 

(Urspriinglicli  Mittelbild  eines  Triptychons) 
The  Virgin  with  Child  Urn  1490  La  Vierge  avec  l'Enfant 

(Formerly  central  part  of  a  triptych)  (Autrefois  la  partie  centrale  tl'un  triptyque) 

Nach  dnei  Aufnnhnie  von  J.  L6wy,  Wlen 


117 


Johannes  der  Taufer  Johannes  der  Evangelist 

(lnnenbilder  zu  S.  118) 

St.  John  Baptist  Saint  Jean  Baptiste       Urn  1480    St.  John  the  Evangelist    St.  Jean  l'Evangeliste 

(Inner-pictures  belonging  to  p.  118)  (Tableaux  de  l'interieur  appartenant  a  p.  118) 

Nach  etner  Autnahmc  von  J  Lfiwy,  Wlen 


119 


120 


Memllng  21 


121 


Berlin,  Sammlung  f  R.  von  Kaufmann  Durchmesser  0,205 

Segnender  Christus 
The  blessing  Christ  Urn  1490  Le  Christ  benissant 


124 


ANHANG 


ZWEI FELHAFTE  UND  UNECHTE  BILDER 
KOPIEN 


APPENDIX 

DOUBTFUL  AND  NOT  GENUINEt  PICTURES 
COPIES 


SUPPLEMENT 

TABLEAUX  DOUTEUX  OU  NON  AUTHENTIQUES 
COPIES 


127 


128 


Memllng  22 


129 


130 


Wlcn,  Golerle  Liechtenstein  11.0,43,  B.  0,36 

Madonna  mit  dem  Kinde 

The  Virgin  wilh  Child  La  Vierge  avec  l'Enfant 

Nach  elner  Auftiahmc  von  Frunz  HanlBbiengl,  Hflnchen 


131 


*  London,  Earl  of  Northbrook  H.  0,32,  B.  0,205 

Madonna  mit  dem  Kinde 
The  Virgin  with  Child  La  Vierge  avec  l'Enfant 

Nach  elner  Aulnahme  von  F.  Bruckmann  A.-G.,  Munchen 


Berlin,  Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum  H.  0,87,  B.  0,55 

Thronende  Madonna  mit  dem  Kinde 
The  Virgin  with  Child  La  Vierge  avec  l'Enfant 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  Franz  Hanfstaengl,  Miinchen 


34 


135 


136 


Memllng  L>.) 


137 


139 


141 


142 


»  Hayward's  Heath,  Stephenson  Clarke  K.  0,70,  B.  0,5; 

Madonna  mit  dem  Kinde  und  Engeln 

The  Virgin  with  Child  and  angels  La  Vierge  avec  l'Enfant  et  des  anges 

Nach  elner  Autnahme  von  P.  Bnickmann  AG.,  MOnehea 


143 


144 


Die  Kreuzigung  Christi 

Nach  dem  Stich  von  Julius  Goltzius.  Das  Originalgemalde  Memlings  verschollen 
The  crucifixion  Le  cruciliement 

After  tlie  etching  of  Julius  Goltzius,  D'apres  la  gravure  de  Jules  Goltzius, 

the  original  painting  being  lost  le  tableau  original  etant  perdu 


.Meinling  24 


145 


Budapest,  Museum  der  bildenden  Kiinste 

The  crucifixion 


Die  Kreui 


Nach  einer  Aufnahme 


Christi 

Le  crucifiement 

llanfstacngl,  Miinchcn 

146/147 


Wien,  Hofmuseum  H.  0,58,  B.  0,28 

Die  Kreuztragung  Christi 

(Seitenflugel  zu  dem  Bilde  auf  S.  146/147) 
Christ  bearing  the  cross  Le  Christ  portant  la  croix 

(Left  wing  of  the  picture  p.  146/147)        (Volet  a  gauche  du  tableau  p.  146/147) 


148 


Nacli  einer  Aufnahme  von  J.  Lowy,  Wien 


Memling  25 


149 


150 


*  Brussel,  Kgl.  Museum  H.  0,64,  B.  0,67 

Das  Martyrium  des  heiligen  Sebastian 

The  martyrdom  of  St.  Sebastian  Le  martyre  de  Saint  Sebastien 

Nach  ciner  Aufnahme  von  Biaun,  Clement  &  Cie.,  Dornach  (Elsass) 


152 


Die  Einkleidung  dcs  lieiligen  Ildefonso  durcli  Maria 
St.  Ildefonso  invested  by  the  Virgin     Saint  lldefonse  vetu  par  la  Vicrge 

Nticli  liner  Aiifn.ilimc  \ on  F<  Bruckmann  A.  Q.,  Munclu-n 


154 


Memling  2(> 


157 


Memling  26* 


159 


'Pari?,  Sammlung  f  Lcop.  Go'dschmidt  H.0,41,  B.  0,33c 

Bildnis  des  Tommaso  Portinari 

Portrait  of  Tommaso  Portinari  Portrait  de  Tommaso  Portinari 

Xach  einer  Aufnahme  von  F.  Bruckrnann  A.-G.,  Munchen 


160 


161 


163 


Chantilly,  MusCe  Cond6 

Anthony  of  Burgundy 

Nach 


Anton  von  Burgund 

Antoine  de  Bourgogne 

Aufnahme  von  Braun,  Clement  &  Cie.,  Dornach  (Elsass) 


164 


«  Dresden,  Kgl.  Qemllldegalcrle  H.  0,45,  li.  0,  (55 

Anion  von  Hurgund 
Anthony  of  Burgundy  Antoint  de  Bourgogne 

Nnch  finer  Aufn.-ilimc  von  Pi  ■  O.  Brockm.-mns  Nachf.,  Dresden 


165 


Bergamo,  Accademia  Carrara  H.  0,38,  £ 

Bildnis  eines  jungen  Mannes 
Portrait  of  a  young  man  Portrait  d'un  jeune»homme 

Nach  einer  Aufnahme  von  D.  Anderson,  Rom 


166 


167 


GETTY  CENTER  LIBRARY 

Mil  III  II  III 

3  3125  00105  2956 


